Getting Freaky
In general, fetishes are outside the norm of sexual activity and knowledge and many of them carry their own unique risks when it comes to preventing STDs and HIV. The Oxford English Dictionary defines "fetish" in the following way: "An object, a non-sexual part of the body, or a particular action which abnormally serves as the stimulus to, or the end in itself of, sexual desire." Fetishes are known as paraphilias when they involve extreme, dangerous or harmful elements.